And out of the Ashes
by Hidden in the Darkness
Summary: When life goes up in flames for Sara, she turns to Grissom for help.
1. Intro

And Out of the Ashes.. 1?

By Caity

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or any of its characters.. If I did CM would be fired and Grissom and Sara would be together already and the Spork would have died a terrible horrible death.

Rating: PG-13… for now..

Author's note: I thought it was time I came out of lurkdom… But I thought I kick off with a fic.. _  
_

INTRO 

_'It's all up in flames now. Everything.' _

Lost in thought, Sara Sidle stared sadly at the door to Gil Grissom's townhouse, with nothing but a single blanket wrapped around her cold shoulders. The clothes she wore were tattered and torn.

Dark brunette hair drooped raggedly around Sara's soot covered oval face. Rivulets of tears had washed away tears on her cheeks to reveal pale skin beneath the soot.

Sara had lost everything in the space of a few hours.. Her apartment, her belongings, everything. Coming home after a long frustrating double shift, she had immediately flopped down upon her comforting couch and had fallen into deep slumber. Less than an hour later, Sara awoke to the blazing sound of the fire alarm going off.. She had quickly got up, thrown her shoes on and had fled outside to find her apartment complex going up in flames. Ashes fell everywhere as people gathered in the streets to watch the fire department desperately try to save the complex, to no avail. And the CSI could do nothing but watch. 

She had nowhere else to go. Hours of driving in the cold left her in front of her boss's door.. But he wasn't only her boss, was he? He was the man who had stolen her heart away in the blink of an unabashed eye and refused to give it back. He was also the man who refused to do anything about it, leaving her heart torn and broken. 

With a small hopeless sigh, Sara raised her pale white fist, which was covered in soot and grime, to the door and knocked..

After a few long moments the door slowly opened to reveal a lethargic Gilbert Grissom, his arms over his head stretching in an attempt to wake himself up.

"Yes what is i-Sara! What the hell happened!" He exclaimed loudly, his piercing bright eyes going wide upon seeing her appearance as he looked up..

"Griss…" she said quietly, looking down at her feet timidly. "Can I come in?" She paused , glancing up at his face, her chocolate brown eyes meeting his baby blue. "I...I have nowhere else to go…"

TBC..


	2. Chapter 1

And Out of the Ashes 2?  
By Caity

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or any of its characters.. If I did all of the CSI guys would be at home waiting for me in my bed...

Rating: PG-13… for now..

Author's note: OMG.. I amm sooooooo sorry for reposting the intro.. rolls eyes My computer is stupid... grr... Well.. HERE'S the next part!

Thanks: Thanks to my lovely beta, Firedrake! All hail her!

Reviews:

ayesha84: Thanks! I am continuing..

Odeepblue, Denese25, and Kasjdogg: I am soooo thankful you guys reviewed and notified me.. THANK YOU! This chapter is dedicated to you guys!

* * *

Chapter 1 

It took the speechless man a seemingly endless moment to respond "Sure...yeah… come in..." He motioned his hand at her as he opened the door open wider. "Come in…"

Sara silently shuffled into Grissom's townhouse, clutching the blanket around her shoulders to her for warmth. Glancing around her boss's townhouse, Sara could remember only one other time she had been here. It had been the Strip Strangler Case and it had been the whole team, not just her. But now that she was here on her own, Sara realized how barren Grissom's apartment was; it only had the bare necessities. In fact, it hardly felt like anyone lived there; it was missing that homey warm feeling. Another thing the CSI noted was that her own apartment was the complete opposite of Grissom's. While his was neat and orderly with few decorations and very white and plain, her apartment had been cluttered and entirely unorganized, each separate room decorated in a different wild color.

Sara's eyes wandered without focus or purpose, until she caught sight of the only adornment to the plain room, a glass-covered collection of hundreds of multi-colored butterflies that dominated the wall where it hung. There were so many of them, so many different species and colors, that it was completely magnificent.

"They're beautiful..." she said, quietly going over and fingering the delicate display of pinned insects. As she touched the display one individual butterfly, delicate blue-green insect the size of her palm, caught her eye. A single precious wing had somehow fallen off the tiny creature, as if someone had reached into the display and had plucked the wing right off. Even if it were alive it would never have the chance to spread its gorgeous wings and fly again. It would never have the chance to touch the sky.

With a small sigh, Sara turned around and faced Grissom before settling down upon his black leather couch.

"Sara… Wh..." He paused looking for the right words. "What happened?" Grissom finally said quietly, his baby blue eyes wordlessly pleading her to talk to him, to confidein him like she once did.

Sara looked down at her feet, wishing the past few hours hadn't gone by; she would give her left arm to reverse time. Her eyes flickered momentarily upward toward the plain white ceiling she started to spill everything to Grissom, her voice taking on a detached and lost tone. "I woke up to the sound of the alarm going off. Flames everywhere. Everything… everything was on fire. There were screams, so many screams… The next thing I remember I was on the side walk. Watching the flames... It all went down in flames."

The distressed brunette sighed as she tried to deal with the nights events. She then brought her soot covered hands up to her face to automatically mask the single clear tear that fell from her coffee brown eyes, wiping away a tiny stream of filth from her face.

Grissom watched Sara wordlessly, fighting the temptation to go over and wrap his big arms around her to comfort her. Instead he bit his lip ever so slightly before saying to her, "Sara, maybe… Maybe you should go clean up. You could use my shower. And I can lend you some clothes that might fit you…"

Sara looked up at him and opened her mouth slightly to speak but found her throat trembling and ready to give away to tearful sobs. Becoming aware that her voice would give away how vulnerable she felt at the moment, she swallowed and nodded solemnly at him. With slow tired movements, she stood up and shuffled toward the bathroom, unable to look back.

TBC..

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Reviews.. Compliments.. Critisisms.. Whatever.. All are welcome! 


	3. Chapter 2

And Out of the Ashes.. 3?

By Caity

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI or any of its characters.. If I did CM would be fired and Grissom and Sara would be together already and the Spork would have died a terrible horrible death.

Rating: PG-13… for now..

Author's note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed:)

* * *

**Chapter 2**

As the comforting warmth of the water struck against Sara's nude body, she felt all the emotions of the night wash away along with the soot and grim from the treacherous fire. It appeared as if her devastation and shock rinsed down the drain with the remnants of her salty tears.

Now looking back it seemed as though the fire had only a distant memory, it seemed that many days had passed since the fire. It seemed impossible that in reality it had only been a few short, insignificant hours.

Turning off the water at long last, Sara reached outside of the shower and grabbed the fluffy red towel that was hanging nearby. Quickly wrapping herself in it, she stepped out onto the cold tile floor.  
Wrapping herself in a fluffy red towel that hung beside the shower, Sara finally turned off the water and stepped out onto the cold tile floor. She shivered slightly as the cold hit her before reaching for the clothes Grissom had set out earlier for her.

Sara hesitated before picking up the old, gray, Harvard sweatshirt, which she deduced was from his college days. Lifting it to her nose, she inhaled a strong scent that was distinctly Grissom. With a slight guilty sigh of pleasure she slipped into the sweatshirt, which although a small size on Grissom was still pretty big on her. She then quickly picked up the pair of matching sweatpants and slipped them on.

As she wrapped her arms around herself for warmth, Sara exited the bathroom. She could see Grissom standing in the living room, his forehead wrinkled in frustration as he talked softly on the phone. She noted that his big soft hand ran anxiously through his salt and pepper colored hair. Oh how she wished his hand would run through her own hair.

Sara stifled a small yawn, abruptly awakened to the realization of how exhausted she truly was. The night had really worn her down.

With one last glance toward the man who had stolen her heart away, Sara quietly padded into the guest bedroom to her right. Crawling onto the bed, Sara yawned again before lying down and closing her eyes. Soon she was drifting off into the sweet oblivion that was sleep.

* * *

TBC... Next chapter.. We will learn what started the fire.. 


	4. Chapter 3 & 4

**And Out of the Ashes**

By Caity

PG-13 for now.

Chapter 3

Rubbing his now slightly red eyes, Grissom hung up on the phone and sank down upon his black leather couch. A few minutes before, Detective Brass, Grissom's close, personal friend and Las Vegas detective, had called and informed Grissom that they had a new arson case. An entire apartment complex had been burnt down. But even before Brass had been given the time to mention to Grissom the fact that it had been Sara's own apartment complex, he had known.

Arson.. Arsons, the crime of maliciously, voluntarily, and willfully setting fire to the building, buildings, or other property of another. The though resonated in his head. Someone had intentionally set Sara's apartment on fire. The though made his blood boil. And Grissom was positive that she had been the target. Not only had the accelerants been found in her hallway, someone had deliberately put a chair in front of Sara's door in a desperate attempt to lock her in. Thank the heavens it hadn't worked.

But who in their right mind would have wanted to harm Sara, let alone kill her. The young brunette was one of the kindest people with the biggest heart Grissom had ever met. He couldn't imagine anyone who would have done such a thing to her. It seemed impossible to him. Almost impossible.

Grissom didn't know what he would have done if he had lost her. The world, quite possibly couldhave stopped. And he didn't want that. No. Not at all.

With a small sigh Grissom glanced at his watch; it read 9:32 AM. Normally his shift wouldn't have started for another 12 hours. He was going to go in to the lab early to see if the day shift, the shift on at the moment, had been able to come up with any evidence on the arson case. He needed to know who would have done such a thing. He needed to do it for Sara, he couldn't let this criminal try again.

Standing back up, Grissom glanced back to the door to the spare bedroom where  
Sara slumbered. He had noticed Sara had gone into it after she had exited the shower. The poor girl had seemed exhausted, and he wished he could have comforted her. But not now, there was no time; he needed to hurry to the Crime Lab.

Grissom quickly trotted over to his bedroom and grabbed his Forensics Kit, double checking to be sure that it was fully stocked. In addition to a large framed painting of a blue butterfly, the metal case was the only personal touch in the simple bedroom .As he exited the room into the hallway he stopped by the door to the room in which Sara was silently napping. Grissom carefully opened the door and peeked into the room, smiling to see Sara fast asleep in the dream world. She needed her sleep.

The door to the guest room closed as Grissom turned around and went back out into the living room. He reached into his kit and pulled out a pen and paper and he quickly scribbled a note on it as not to worry the sleeping girl when she woke up. Signing his name, Grissom set the note down along with a spare key for her on the coffee table where Sara was sure to find it.

Closing the front door and locking it behind him, Grissom set off for the Crime Lab with his mind few could match focused on catching an arsonist.

TBC..

Chapter 4

The grey haze that was sleep seemed to dissipate as Sara opened her coffee brown eyes to the chaos that was the waking world. Shivering from the penetrating cold, she sat up, wishing she were back deep in her refuge of unconsciousness. The world seemed safer, kinder when she was asleep. She would rather be deep in the abyss than wide awake in the nightmare that was reality.

Dizziness hit Sara as she she stood too quickly for her stressed body to handle. She had to scurry to the bathroom to make it in time. Once there, she retched the contents of her stomach, a piece of 3 day old pizza and two cups of coffee from the night before, into the porcelain toilet. Rinsing her mouth in the sink to rid the taste of vomit, she slowly stood up to avoid another wave of nausea.

As the feeling of sickness wore away, Sara exited the bathroom and haggardly walked out into the living room. Immediately upon entry Grissom's absence struck like a blow. A speedy glance confirmed it: he was no longer home.For a seemingly endless moment, Sara started to panic. Had Grissom left her, she wondered, her eyes going wide at the terrifying thought. He couldn't have decided she was a complete nuisance to him to her and abandoned her. Could he? He couldn't…

These terrible thoughts were washed out of Sara's mind as she spotted the hastily-written note lying on top of the wooden coffee table. She snatched at it like it was the last tether to life. It read;

Sara,  
I was called in by Brass. I'll be back after the shift.  
DO NOT go to work. You have the night off. Rest.  
Grissom.

"Like hell I will…" Sara muttered under her breath, shaking her head. Carefully she folded the note and cradled it in her hand. The small piece of paper was at least a little evidence that Grissom cared. Cared enough to make sure Sara got rest. And that was better then nothing.

Sara glanced around Grissom's bare townhouse like a young child who was about to steal a cookie from the cookie jar. Grabbing the spare key Grissom had left behind on the table, she dashed out the door.

The Crime Lab, her painkiller, her escape from reality, was calling to her. It pulled on her like a drug pulls on an addict and she wasn't about to resist that pull. In point of fact, she couldn't.

Outside the townhouse, a tall man with thinning hair sat in a parked, black, nondescript sedan. His dark eyes, shielded by black sunglasses followed the exiting brunette as she climbed into her Tahoe. His face was impassive and shady as he gripped the wheel in front of him. How could she have gone to another man? She should have come to HIM. His hands grasped on the wheel tighter as he complemented the situation, his knuckles blanching white with the strength of the grip. She really did deserve all this.

As Sara started up her truck and pulled away into traffic, he started his own engine and pulled out behind her. Time for a second chance. She would get what she deserved. Arson hadn't workedBut he had something in mind that just might.

_TBC._


	5. Chapter 5

**And Out of the Ashes 6?**  
Author's note: Hey all.. Thanks to all reading this fic. I am so glad to get this chapter out. I think so far it has been my longest. I also am giving cookies to anyone who can correctly guess who the balding man is:P  
Rating: PG-13 for now.. Will most likely change

Disclaimer: I do not in any shape of form own CSI or any of the characters related to it. If I did this land would most likely be called OZ or Wonderland…

Reviews:

Anonymous Skeleton: Here's more just as you asked! 

martini crazy: Hey.. Thanks:P Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

ayesha84: Oh.. how could I ignore a request like that! Of COURSE I will give more.

I am glad you are enjoying it!

Mel: Updated:P Enjoy!

somedayGSR: LOL.. Yes poor poor Sara. She'll get over it eventually if I want this to be a good story.

I am so glad you think its well written, my Honors English 10 teacher will be so proud:P Thank you!

Here's the next chapter!

Emily: I am glad you are enjoying it! Here you go!

Jtbwriter:Sara is indeed very stubborn and rushing out was very dumb on her part,

but that was the point. LOL. You will be finding out what the stalker does now!

laughs manically If you hated that cliffhanger you will kill me over this one. Enjoy!

Creechie: That is a lot of OMGs…… lol.. Here you go! more!

**Chapter 5**

Sara drove along highway 79 quickly, her car radio quietly playing Haunted", by Evanescence" Sara was half way to the crime lab, driving along a familiar stretch of road with equally familiar speed. Unexpectedly, her Tahoe was flooded with unfeasibly bright light. She had the fleeting impression of a set of car headlights before the searing light robbed her of vision. The truck swerved, and she fought the wheel. There was no use to it.. She couldn't make out the details of the dark road. The truck careened out of control.

* * *

Grissom inaudibly entered the DNA lab and spotted Greg at the computer. Raising an eyebrow at the lab rat turned CSI, he asked, "Greg… What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home? Shift doesn't start for a few hours."

"You're here," Greg retorted shortly. Between the limpness of the young man's hair and the anxiety in his eyes, Grissom had never seen Greg looking this distressed. Grissom shot the youngest CSI a look, and Greg straightened his posture respectfully, "I'm working the arson case. Brass called me in…" Greg glanced around nervously. "Boss… It was Sara's place."

Grissom watched as Greg shifted nervously, and clasped his hands together. Grissom had already known this though.

"Nobody's seen her since the fire," Greg continued informed Grissom. "The paramedics checked her out and then she just seemed to disappear. Do you think she is alright?"

"She's fine Greg. She'll be fine," Grissom told Greg, as if he were not only trying to reassure the younger CSI, but also himself. The buzz of the printer was a welcome distraction from the uncomfortable conversation. He reached and grabbed the page as it finished printing and dropped into the tray – was the lab analysis on the accelerant found on Sara's floor.

"How do you know-" The anxious Greg was cut off by Grissom looking up from the results. The older of the two of them glared at Greg, as if trying to tell him not to ask.

After a moment of awkward silence, Grissom held out the results for Greg to read. The results were unusual than most. Normally is a common variety of arson, they would expect to see a ordinary substance like gasoline or cleaning fluid, but this was something very out of the norm. Very different.

"Ether?" Greg voiced his surprise to Grissom as he raised a single eyebrow at his boss. "That's unusual for an accelerant. Gasoline would have been more available. Who would have access to Ether in these amounts?"

Grissom shrugged before answering, "Medicals doctors would defiantly have access. Vets also. Labs and researchers, even many dry cleaners and industries."

"But why would any of those people want to harm Sara?" Greg asked softly as he slumped down in the chair in front of the computer.

"I don't know Greg… I truly don't know. But we need to catch them quickly."

"Grissom!" came Catherine's shrill voice full of worry from the doorway. Grissom caught a glimpse of her face as she entered. She looked worried beyond compare. "Hey guys.. I hate to be the one to tell you…but PD called a few minutes ago. They found Sara's Tahoe a few miles away in a ditch by the side of the road. She was no where in sight. It looks like someone ran her off the road."

"WHAT?" Grissom exclaimed, his eyes going wide with fright. He had lost her; she had come to him and now she was gone. Why had she left in the first place? She should've just stayed at his place resting. "That can't be… When I left home she was still sleeping. "The man they all knew as calm and collected was starting to go pale and lose his cool. He felt as if his world had shattered into a billion tiny pieces.

Not even bothering to ask why Sara had been at Grissom's townhouse in the first place, Catherine sighed. "Do we have any leads to a specific suspect?"

Grissom hung his head sadly and muttered, "No."

* * *

Opening her brown eyes, Sara discovered she was no longer in her truck. In fact, she was laying on a strange bed in a room she didn't recognize. There was an odd smell of dust in the air and the windows were all covered with heavy curtains so that it was pitch dark. Sara could barely see past her own nose.

Wincing from pain, Sara tried to sit up but found her hands were tied tightly to the bedpost with what felt like silk. Although for reason that escaped her comprehension her legs were free.

Struggling with her bonds, the entrapped brunette started to panic. The last thing she remembered were headlights blinding her and being run off the road. Unfortunately she had been unable to identify the person in the other car.

Who could have done this? She wondered as she struggled to get free. Why would they do this to me?

As she continued to strain against the bonds, the door opened, filling the room with a bright light. Squinting against the bright glare of light, Sara was finally able to catch a glimpse of her assailant. Her instinctive gasp of shock was thunderous in the silent room. Quickly regaining her voice she cried, "YOU!"

TBC... cues dramatic music hehehe…


	6. Chapter 6

And Out of the Ashes 7?

Author's Note: Thanks to all those who reviewed! I was pleasantly surprised with all of your guesses, but only three people got it right. gives cookies to the people But I appreciate the effort none the less!

…. OH YEAH! throws confetti If any of you saw the end of WTG you know WHY I AM HAPPY!

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I own CSI!. ….. yeah.. I WISH

Chapter 6:

Grissom sat unmoving in his office blanketed, in darkness. The leather of his couch beneath him crunched as he slouched and lowered his head into his hands. He could almost feel the impending migraine and there was an odd ringing in his ears. Sara had been missing for almost four hours now and there was still no sign of her.

At least it had been obvious at the crash site that she hadn't left on her own God-given will.

A few minutes 'as soon as he learned that the smiling brunette had disappeared, Grissom had sprung into action and called in the cavalry. In less than 20 minutes, Nick and Warrick had arrived at the Crime Lab raring and ready to go, even though it had been their day off. The entire team had worked frantically trying to find even the smallest amount of evidence of Sara's unknown location.

They still hadn't found a single conclusive thing.

Nick appeared in the doorway of Grissom's office, his face appearing forlorn. "Grissom," he said quietly to his boss. "We'll find her."

Grissom lifted his head and met Nick's eyes as the CSI, the one person in the crime lab who had once been taken himself, continued, "You found me."

"We were lucky, Poncho…" Grissom answered with a small, depressed sigh. "I'm not sure we will be that lucky this time. I'm not sure…"

"It was more than luck, Grissom," Nick voiced softly before turning and leaving to go back to the search.

* * *

Sara glared heatedly at the man who stood in the doorway. Her chestnut brown eyes were defiant, but still held a glimmer of fear. She was well aware of what this man could accomplish; she was no fool. Sara had seen his last victim, and the poor woman's image was still burned on the inside of her skull. She would never forget her; they were too much alike.

"What do you want with me?" she asked him carefully. She raised her head to the best of her ability, considering the restraints, and met the cold, blue eyes of her kidnapper, so different from the warm, blue ones of Grissom. She had loathed him terribly the first time she had seen him, and that was only through the viewing room at the Crime Lab. The man was practically indifferent to what he did and that completely terrified her.

"Hello Debbie" he said with a small chuckle. "It's good to see you again, too."

Sara glowered angrily. She knew who he was referring to: his former victim Debbie Marlin. His former victim had been the spitting image of the captive Criminalist. Sara remained mute however as Dr. Vincent Lurie advanced menacingly toward the bed, her mind paralyzed by alarm.

TBC…


	7. Chapter 7

And Out of the Ashes 8?

AN! Ok.. I am soooo sooo sorry about how long it took me to update this. School's been nuts and my beta took forever to send it back to me. But I'd like to thank everyone who commented and messeged me:) I hope this doesn't disapoint you.

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I own CSI!. ….. just like I own the X-File, Jag, and Harry Potter.. and microsoft.. :P hehe.. sense some sarcasm anyone?

Chapter 7:

A sharp ringing met a distraught Grissom's ear as he sat up from his leather couch. Rubbing his head to prevent an impending migraine, he reached for the cell phone on his desk. Grissom's eyes were red with worry as he hastily answered the phone, "What do you have?" he asked saying nothing else to whomever was on the other end of the phone,

"Grissom, its Catherine…" The voice of Catherine chimed clearly from his cell phone. Her shrill, sudden voice caused Grissom to pull the phone away from his ear, but not far enough to miss the next sudden words that erupted from the phone. "We found something."

"What do you have?"

* * *

"Debbie." Dr. Lurie's taunting voice was aimed at Sara, a menacing smile spreading across his face that she could barely see in the dark room. "You shouldn't have screwed with me Debbie." He had advanced all the way to the large bed where Sara was bound. Even in the near dark, with the only light in the whole room coming from a crack underneath the door, she could still see the cold, almost psychotic glint in his eyes. 

Licking his lips, Lurie ran a finger up Sara's side, eliciting an alarmed gasp of disgust from her. His touch made her want to vomit.

"YOU BASTAR-" Sara cried out suddenly, fighting off the urge to hurl. She was cut off by her captor's hand roughly covering her mouth. Revulsion rose up deep within Sara; the man was a monster.

"Now, now Debbie…." he chimed, shaking his boney finger. The motion sent a series of shivers up her back. He was truly mad if he actually believed that she was Debbie, Sara's doppelganger.

"You shouldn't have chosen him over me, Debbie…" Lurie said, and Sara could see a flicker of anger crossing his cold, blue eyes. "Don't you remember what happened last time? The last time you chose another man over me? You don't want that to happen again …. Do you?"

Lurie then lifted his free hand and ran it across Sara's jumper-covered chest, lingering far longer than was decent. Sara's fists clenched in anger, despite the fact that she was tied up by her wrists. No one touched her like that.  
"This clothing will have to go first, of course," he continued, his eyes seeming to devour her.

Anger flared across Sara's chocolate-brown eyes; there was no way, even bound, that she would stand for that. She was no one's play thing. So she did the only thing she could do considering her horrific situation. She bit his hand. Hard.

A trickle of blood oozed from the small wound, and Lurie reared back, howling from the sudden pain. The anger was clear in his eyes.

"YOU BITCH!" he roared loudly, causing Sara to wince. He brought his other hand up and lashed it across her face. The spot where his hand made contact smarted, but Sara bit her lip to prevent herself from crying out. She wouldn't give him the pleasure. No way in hell would she let him degrade her.

No way…

TBC...((cues dramatic music))

Caity


End file.
